Hurricanes Maria which hit the Caribbean and Irma, which hit both the Caribbean and United States, weighed heavily on the results, although growth had already been tapering.

Japan’s domestic traffic also took a weather-related hit as Typhoon Talim caused a significant slowing of traffic growth from the 8.8 percent recorded in August to 3.6 percent in September.

“Global economic conditions support rising passenger demand, but with higher cost inputs, the demand stimulation from lower fares has waned, suggesting a moderating trend in traffic growth,” said De Juniac.

Robust growth in China boosted Asia-Pacific airlines traffic growth of 8.7 percent in September compared to the period one year earlier, the strongest growth among regions.